Shares of Ambuja Cements came under intense pressure in early morning trade on Thursday, a day after the company reported a year-on-year decline of more than 30 per cent in its profit for the June quarter.

The company, on Wednesday, said that its profit slipped 31 per cent year-on-year to Rs 324 crore in the three months ended June 30.

Net sales slipped nearly 9 per cent to Rs 324 crore, while operating margins dropped 700 basis points to 21 per cent year-on-year in the quarter under review.

The cement producer blamed higher input cost, weak demand and lower realization for its poor quarterly results.

In early morning trade on the Bombay Stock Exchange, Ambuja shares were trading at Rs 165 apiece, 14 per cent lower than their closing price on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Ambuja Cement's Swiss parent Holcim has announced its decision to hike its stake in the Indian cement producer in order to cut costs.

Under the terms of the agreement, Ambuja will acquire a 24 per cent stake in Holcim India for Rs 3,500 crore and then the two companies will be merged via a share swap. In addition, Ambuja will issue 58.4 crore new shares worth nearly Rs 11,200 crore to Holcim. It will hike Holcim's stake in Ambuja from around 50 per cent to 61.39 per cent. In return, Ambuja will get Holcim's slightly more than 50 per cent stake in ACC.